Archives for Drew McKissick

Local Lobbying (or How to Fight City Hall)

October 28, 2023 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

local lobbyingHave a problem with local government? You’re not the first and you certainly won’t be the last. But what can you do about it?  That’s were local lobbying comes in.

Keep in mind that there are some key differences between lobbying for local change, versus at the state or national levels.  And there are some specific tactics that you should keep in mind to be more effective in local lobbying.

Unique Aspects of Local Government:

One Chamber: As opposed to state legislatures and Congress, whether you’re talking about school boards, city/county councils or commissions, you’re only dealing with one group of elected officials, rather than two.

Fewer Officials: The typical local government has fewer elected officials to keep an eye on, (the national average is six), versus potentially hundreds at higher levels.

They Represent Fewer People: Local elected officials represent far fewer constituents.  This means that they are more susceptible to organized, outside pressure.

Fewer Targets: When you have fewer elected officials that means that there are going to be fewer “undecided” or persuadable officials that you need to target…possibly just one or two.

Local Lobbying Tips:

Learn the Process: There can be wide variances in the legislative process (from cities, to counties, to school boards), so research how the process works in your area.  Contact your local council or board member and ask for information.  The more you know about the process in your area, the more effective you will be.

Do Your Research and Identify Your Targets: Find out exactly where they stand, and then relentlessly focus all of your time and attention on the undecided/persuadable votes.  When you consider that you’re focusing on just a couple of officials who themselves represent a small number of constituents, this gives you tremendous leverage.

Choose the Right Lobbying Tactics: Phone calls, letters, emails, personal visits, petitions, something else or all of the above?  “What” you do can depend on how much time you have and how many people are willing to help.  Choose those that best leverage your resources.  (You can see some of the basics in my “Nine Grassroots Opportunities” report).

Get to Know Them: Personal relationships at this level of government go farther than at the state and national levels.  Make an effort to get to know them personally.  Contribute to and help the ones who think like you do.  Be active in local organizations that they are involved in (especially the local GOP).  Remember, “politics is people”!

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You can “beat City Hall” (or any other local government), but you need to do your homework first.  And don’t forget, most state and national politicians used to be local politicians – so investing in local lobbying can pay big lobbying dividends in the future!

Tips on Candidate Recruitment

October 8, 2023 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

Candidate RecruitmentAs Ronald Reagan once said, “Personnel is policy”. The public policies we have (and tend to complain about) are the direct result of “who” gets to make them. That means that if you want to change public policy, the best way to do it is by changing the people who are making it. And that means winning elections. But in order to do that, you need good candidates.

That’s where candidate recruitment comes in.

There’s an old saying in politics that you can’t beat somebody with nobody; and it’s true on a couple of levels. If you don’t have a candidate to support (or you aren’t one yourself), then you’re not going to “win” on Election Day. And if you don’t win, you can’t have much of an impact on public policy. But even if you do have a candidate, you’re also less likely to win without a “good” candidate.

It’s not enough to focus on finding someone/anyone to run who’s willing to pay a filing fee and put their name on a ballot. You need to focus on finding quality candidates that can actually win.

So how do you recruit good candidates? And what offices should you focus on recruiting them for?

What Offices to Recruit For?

This is the first question that too often gets overlooked in candidate recruitment efforts. Focus on those races with districts that a good candidate would have a reasonable chance of winning. Don’t waste time finding someone to run for an office that a Republican can’t win – to say nothing of all of the resources that will be lost and the people (and candidates) who will get discouraged by losing.

So which districts? Take some time to look at the last few sets of election returns (available at your county election office) for the races that you are interested in and do a little math. Did any Republican get over 50% of the vote in that area? If not, move on. If so, what was the highest GOP percentage? What was the lowest? If the “high” is over 50% and the “low” is respectable, it’s probably winnable. Start recruiting!

How to Recruit?

Put together a small committee of people who not only know a lot of other people, but know “about” them and can offer honest/critical assessments. Talk to community leaders (pastors, business people, conservative organization leaders) and get their opinions. Put a list together and form a consensus. Then go talk to your prospects about running.

You should be looking for:

  1. People who have solid conservative principles,
  2. People who are passionate and can communicate a conservative message that will attract supporters and help them raise money, and
  3. People who have good people skills and are savvy enough to navigate the world of politics.

Further, look for candidates that can excite the grassroots base of the party, as well as gain the respect of others. The more a candidate can pull the party together buy unifying around the base (rather than against it), the more unified and energized the party will be in the fall and the better the chances of winning.

Keep in mind that it will help convince a good potential recruit to run if they know that you (and the people you’re working with) will be there to help them put a campaign together and spread the word to find other support. Don’t recruit them and then leave them hanging in the wind.

A Conservative Opportunity

Organized candidate recruitment is one of the areas where conservatives have a tremendous opportunity to leverage their networks and connections to identify good prospects as well as to coalesce support for them in the process. This can have an even greater impact in Republican party primary elections, (which is tantamount to be elected in some areas).

The better the candidates that we recruit and run at the local level, the better off the conservative movement will be over the long-run as the cream begins to rise up the political ranks and they run for higher office.

Of course, there are no “perfect” candidates. But there are “better” candidates. And the better the candidate and the more favorable the district, the better your chances of backing a winner.

Good candidate recruitment matters. Don’t miss the opportunity!

Political Parties: How to Get Involved

September 10, 2023 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | 1 Comment

political partiesAs I’ve mentioned before, getting involved in a political party is one of the best ways to have an impact on the things you care about.  And for conservatives, that means getting involved in the GOP.

However, many people don’t get involved simply because they don’t know much about it, and a lack of information intimidates people.  So, for those who have never been involved, here’s a rundown on pretty much all you need to know and where to begin.

Structure of Political Parties

Political parties are structured in the form of a pyramid, with national elected leaders at the top and the broad base of supporters at the foundation, with several layers in between.  People at each level in turn elect leaders for their own level and delegates to move up and select leaders for the next level.  In the same manner, each level usually adopts its own platform and resolutions on issues that members feel strongly about.  This ultimately culminates at the national conventions once every four years when they select presidential nominees.

Precincts are the most basic units of any political party, and they are organized geographically around the place where you normally go vote.  And because precincts are also the most basic unit in American politics – on which pretty much EVERYTHING else is built – they are the most important.  More importantly, because they’re the smallest units, they’re the ones that YOU and an organized group of fellow conservatives can have the most influence over.

Further up the food chain, county (or sometimes “district”) committees are generally comprised of the elected representatives from each precinct; and each state has a committee and a convention comprised of elected representatives from each county (or “district”).  Each state in turn elects members to a national committee which acts as a board of directors for four years between national conventions.

So, where do you Start?

Generally, all that’s required to become active in a political party’s organization is your willingness to get involved. Depending on the state you live in you may need to make sure you’re registered to vote as a Republican, vote in the party primaries, or attend a precinct organizational meeting, (usually held once every two years in many states).

In short, you need a pulse. Nothing is stopping you.

Local party organizations are usually starved for participation.  In fact, the percentage of your fellow Americans that do so is far less than one percent – which magnifies the influence you can have simply by “showing up”.

Since the Republican Party generally serves as the political vehicle for the conservative movement, as a conservative it’s one of your best tools for impacting the issues you care about.  In the process, you can help get good candidates nominated and elected to office, or possibly even run for something yourself someday (stop laughing!).

With all of this being the case, the first thing you should do is join the local county party in your area.  Go to the meetings.  Volunteer for something.  Find out how to be an official part of your local party precinct organization. And when the time comes, run for a delegate spot to you county convention and/or consider running for a precinct officer position.

Remember, if you don’t get involved, you can’t make a difference…and you won’t have much right to complain.

If you have never been involved and don’t know where to go, just “Google” the Republican Party for your state…then find a link to information about your county/city from the state site.  Look for upcoming meeting dates.  Call someone and tell them you want to get involved.  After they get over the shock, they’ll point you in the right direction.

For those who have been or are involved in the party, feel free to forward this on to someone else that you’ve been trying to get to join you!

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